1. Chapter 1: The First Americans
Prehistory to 1492

2. I. Early Peoples Where were the 1st people migrating from?
They migrated from Asia to North, Central,
& South America during the last Ice Age
How long did this take?
B. Centuries – people spread out across the
Americas as far east as the Atlantic Ocean &
as far south as the tip of S. America
What route did they take?
C. They crossed a land bridge, Beringia, from
Siberia to present day Alaska. This bridge is
now under the Bering Strait.

3. I. Early Peoples What is a nomad?
D. A person who moves from place to place in
search of food
What types of hunters were Native Americans?
They were skilled hunters that used every
part of the animal for food, clothing, weapons, & tools

4. II. Settling Down What happened when large animals disappeared?
Native Americans hunted smaller game after the mammoths died, and ate plants & berries
What were the new food sources for Native Americans?
B. Learning to plant & raise crops
People living near the coast or rivers
learned to fish
What did the settlers do?
D. They formed villages & communities.
Some people remained nomadic hunters

5. III. Cities & Empires: Olmec
What were the most advanced civilizations?
Located in present-day Mexico & in Central
& S. America; Olmec, the Maya, the Aztec, & Inca
The Olmec people lived in what is now
Mexico, Guatemala, & Honduras, b/t 1500
b.c. & 3000 b.c.
What were the Olmec people like?
They built stone pavement, drainage
systems, & stone monuments.

6. III. Cities & Empires: Mayan
Where did the Mayans live?
D. present-day Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, & Belize
E. They built large cities, each having at least one stone pyramid
What did the people do?
What was the largest city?
F. Tikal (ti-call) was the largest Mayan city & had 6 pyramid
What type of govt. was it?
G. A theocracy – or a society ruled by religious leaders

7. III. Cities & Empires: Mayan
What were the Mayan gods like?
H. They believed that their gods controlled all that happened on Earth. Atop the pyramids were religious & govt. centers
I. They Maya were skilled astronomers & developed a writing system called hieroglyphics
Interesting info.
What did they trade?
J. maize, vegetables, jade, turquoise, jewelry & cacao beans
K. No one knows – it happened around A.D. 800, but the descendants of the Maya still live in parts of Mexico.
What caused the decline of the Maya?

8. III. Cities & Empires: Aztec
What was Tenochtilan?
L. Home of the Aztec. Founded in An island near present-day Mexico City
What is a causeway?
M. Linked Tenochtilan to the mainland
Who were the Aztec?
N. They were warriors & conquered nearly all rivial communities. Military empire.
O. weapons, maize, cotton cloth, & copper & also forced their captives to work as slaves
What did Aztec take from conquered people?
What did the Aztecs do to please the gods?
P. Their society was organized around religion, & they sacrificed thousands of prisoners in religious ceremonies

9. III. Cities & Empires: Aztec

10. III. Cities & Empires: Inca
Where were the Inca?
Q. Western highlands of S. American – A.D. 1200
Interesting info.
R. Largest of early American civilizations. 3,000 mile empire
What was the population?
S. More than 9 million people
T. 10,000 miles of paved roads, record-keeping system, written language, terracing to plant crops on slopes
What did they do?

11. IV. North American Peoples
Who were the Hohokam?
A. Lived in present-day Arizona.
B. A.D. 300 to They build irrigation channels to bring water to hot, dry land
Who were the Anasazi?
C. They lived in the Four Corners (UT, CO, AZ, & NM) from A.D. 200 & 1300
What did the Anasazi build?
D. Stone & cliff dwellings.
E. Lived in central N.America. They built mounds of earth that looked like Aztec pyramids.
Who were the Mound Builders?

12. IV. North American Peoples
People of the West?
F. Ute & Shoshone – used resources of the forest & the sea as they hunted & gathered
People of the Southwest?
G. Hopi, Acoma, Zuni – adobe brick homes, raised maize, beans, & squash. The Navajo & Apache
People of the Plains?
H. Nomads; hunted & farmed & built tents called tee-pees. They tamed wild horses.
I. Iroquois & Cherokee formed complex political systems of governing.
People of the East?

13. Discussion Questions
Why did these people spread out across the Americas?
They were looking for particular climates or land terrain as well as enough resources so they could survive.
How did early Native Americans learn to adapt to their environment?
They used the resources around them for food, clothing, and shelter. The hunted, fished, planted, and traveled from place to place search of their needs.
Why do you think early American civilizations developed along large bodies of water?
Early people settled near water as a means of transportation and a way to far,. If they needed to flee quickly, they could navigate along the waters
Why do you think the Maya believed that the gods controlled what happened on Earth?
It was an easy way to explain what they did not understand, such as the change of seasons or the weather
How did the Aztec build a military empire?
They went to war & conquered neighboring communities. They stole weapons from the conquered people to help build their empire.
Why is the Inca considered a great civilization?
It was the largest of the early civilizations, stretching for about 3,000 miles. The Inca developed paved roads, a common language, a record-keeping system, & terracing for farming.
Why do you think the dwellings of these early Native Americans were large & massive?
They thought that if they reached high in the sky they would be nearer to the gods. Also if they were visible from far away, and could accommodate a large group of people for living quarters, and for religious ceremonies.
Why do you think the different native American groups developed a wide variety of cultures?
Recognition that regional climate and resources created the need for different lifestyles. Climate and resources affected whether groups farmed, fished, or hunted, were nomadic or permanently settled, and what type of shelters they build.